The Dolphins have placed 27-year old OT Allen Barbre on the Injured Reserve List ending his 2011 season.  He played in 3 games (0 starts) for the Seahawks & Dolphins last year.  He has now played in 28 games (7 starts) in his first four years in the NFL.  This will hurt the Dolphins’ depth along the O-Line.

The Dolphins have signed 27-year old safety Gerald Alexander.  Alexander played in 3 games for the Jaguars last year and he had 16 tackles, 1 fumble recovery and 3 passes defensed.  He has now played in 39 games in his first four years in the NFL and he has 159 tackles, 14 passes defensed, 4 interceptions, 2 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, 4 fumble recoveries and 1 tackle for a loss.  This was a good signing for the Dolphins so late in the preseason.

UPDATE:  (9/3/2011) – The Dolphins have released Gerald Alexander.

The Dolphins’ offense looked good in the first half but dormant in the second half and it cost them this game.  Chad Henne looked sharp in completing 10 of 13 passes for 175 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs.  Matt Moore was not so good as he completed 8 of 16 passes for 90 yards without a TD pass or interception.  Daniel Thomas led the way for the Dolphins in the running game last night with 16 yards rushing on 7 carries (2.3 ypc).  Larry Johnson got his first action with the Fins last night and he carried the ball 2 times for 7 yards (3.5 ypc).  Reggie Bush carried the ball 5 times for -1 yard (-0.2 ypc) but he also caught 2 passes for 23 yards (11.5 avg) in this game.  WR Brandon Marshall led the way in the passing game last night with 2 grabs for 90 yards (45.0 avg) with 1 TD grab.  WR Marlon Moore (2 rec, 41 yards) and TE Anthony Fasano (3 rec, 39 yards) also pitched in for the Fins in the passing game last night.  The Dolphins finished up with 22 yards rushing on 17 carries (1.3 ypc) and they also completed 18 of 29 passes (62.1%) for 225 yards in this game.

The defense played decent for the most part last night for the Fins.  CB Nolan Carroll (6 tackles) and LB Kevin Burnett (6 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 QB hit) led the way for the D last night.  The Buccaneers rushed for 99 yards on 27 carries (3.7 ypc) and they also completed 21 of 42 passes (50%) for 267 yards last night.  The Dolphins are now 2-1 on the preseason.

The Dolphins have signed 31-year old RB Larry Johnson.  Johnson played in 2 games (0 starts) for the Redskins last year and he carried the ball 5 times for 2 yards (0.4 ypc).  He has now played in 84 games (55 starts) in his first 8 years in the NFL and he has carried the ball 1,426 times for 6,221 yards (4.4 ypc) with 55 TD runs.  Johnson has also caught 154 passes for 1,373 yards (8.9 avg) with 6 TD grabs in his NFL career.  Johnson will have a good shot to beat out Lex Hilliard for the #3 RB in 2011, if he can show that he still has a lot left in the gas tank the next couple of weeks.  I like this move for the Dolphins as they don’t have much to lose in giving Johnson a tryout.

UPDATE:  (9/4/2011) – The Dolphins have released Larry Johnson.

UPDATE:  (9/8/2011) – The Dolphins have re-signed Larry Johnson.

The Dolphins should have won by more points last night but that’s nitpicking as they looked solid on both sides of the football.  Chad Henne looked pretty good last night as he completed 15 of 24 passes for 194 yards with 0 TD passes and 0 INTs.  He also carried the ball 2 times for 20 yards (10.0 ypc) last night.  Matt Moore completed 6 of 10 passes for 73 yards without a TD pass or an interception last night.  Rookie Daniel Thomas led the way for the Dolphins in the running game last night with 52 yards rushing on 12 carries (4.3 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Reggie Bush also had a very solid game with 48 yards rushing on 8 carries (6.0 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 33 yards (16.5 avg) last night.  Lex Hilliard pitched in with 25 yards rushing on 6 carries (4.2 ypc) with 1 TD run last night.  TE Anthony Fasano (2 rec, 53 yards), WR Davone Bess (5 rec, 51 yards) and WR Brandon Marshall (5 rec, 46 yards) led the way in the passing game for the Fins last night.  The Dolphins finished up with 164 yards rushing on 43 carries (3.8 ypc) and they also completed 21 of 34 passes (61.8%) for 253 yards last night.

The defense was outstanding last night for the Dolphins.  Safety Reshad Jones (5 tackles), LB Karlos Dansby (4 tackles) and LB Kevin Burnett (4 tackles and 1 pass defensed) led the way for the Fins on D last night.  The Panthers could only muster 68 yards on 18 carries (3.8 ypc) and they completed 16 of 29 passes (55.2%) for 131 yards last night.  The Dolphins are now 2-0 on the pre-season.

The Dolphins are likely going to find out that new is not always better in 2011.  Gone are Ronnie Brown (Eagles) and Ricky Williams (Ravens) who provided the Fins with a nice running game for years.  Enter Reggie Bush and Daniel Thomas.  23-year old rookie Daniel Thomas was selected by the Dolphins out of Kansas State in the 2nd round of the 2011 NFL Draft.  Thomas is a power runner at 6’1″, 228 pounds and he will handle the rough stuff between the tackles and on short yardage situations.  I’m pretty confident that Thomas will be the Dolphins’ leading rusher in 2011 as long as he stays healthy.

26-year old Reggie Bush will likely run a lot of sweeps while catching a lot of passes out of the backfield in 2011.  Bush played in 8 games (6 starts) for the Saints last year in which he carried the ball 36 times for 150 yards (4.2 ypc).  He also caught 34 passes for 208 yards (6.1 avg) with 1 TD grab last year.  Bush has now played in 60 games (41 starts) in his first five years in the NFL and he has carried the ball 524 times for 2,090 yards (4.0 ypc) with 17 TD carries.  He has also caught 294 times for 2,142 yards (7.3 avg) with 12 TD grabs in his NFL career to date.  Bush isn’t a workhorse type of back, but he’s plenty effective  if used correctly.

27-year old Lex Hilliard will be #3 in line at RB for the Fins in 2011.  Hilliard played in 16 games (0 starts) for the Dolphins last year but he didn’t get any carries.  He did catch 1 pass for 3 yards last year.  He did catch 1 pass for 3 yards last year.  Hilliard has now played in 32 games (0 starts) in his first two years with the Dolphins and he has carried the ball 23 times for 89 yards (3.9 ypc) with 1 TD carry.  He has also caught 21 passes for 161 yards (7.7 avg) with 2 TD grabs so far in his NFL career. 

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE DOLPHINS RBS IN 2011:  C-

The Dolphins have signed 26-year old linebacker Marvin Mitchell.  Mitchell played in all 16 games for the Saints last year and he had 43 tackles, 1 sack, 2 tackles for a loss, 2 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries and 2 passes defensed.  He has now played in 55 games in his first four years in the NFL and he has 89 tackles, 1 sack, 3 tackles for a loss, 2 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries and 2 passes defensed.  This was a good signing for the Dolphins as Mitchell will give them depth at LB while also helping out on special teams.

The Miami Dolphins were down 17-0 after the first quarter before they started to really play well the rest of the night.  Chad Henne did not look good last night as he completed 4 of 8 passes for 77 yards with 1 TD pass and 2 INTs.  He also carried the ball 1 time for 10 yards.  Matt Moore replace Henne at QB and he looked solid.  Moore completed 11 of 18 passes for 123 yards with 2 TD passes and 1 INT.  He also carried the ball 2 times for 7 yards (3.5 ypc) last night.  Rookie QB Pat Devlin finished up the game by throwing 2 incomplete passes.  RB Nic Grigsby led the way on the ground for the Dolphins last night with 22 yards on 7 carries (3.1 ypc).  Kory Sheets pitched in with 18 yards rushing on 9 carries (2.0 ypc).  He also caught 2 passes for 5 yards (2.5 avg) in this game.  WRs Roberto Wallace (3 rec, 60 yards), Brian Hartline (1 rec, 44 yards) and Edmond Gates (2 rec, 23 yards) each caught 1 TD apiece in this game.  The Dolphins finished up with only 63 yards rushing on 27 carries (2.3 ypc) but they also completed 15 of 28 passes (53.6%) for 198 yards as they only had possession of the ball for 26:30 in the game.

The defense put up a so-so effort last night against Atlanta.  LB A.J. Edds (7 tackles, 2 tackle for a loss, 1 sack and 1 QB hit) and CB Jimmy Wilson (5 tackles, 1 QB hit and 1 sack) led the way for the Fins on D last night.  LB Austin Spitler (fumble recovery), CB Benny Sapp (interception) and CB Vince Agnew (interception) also made big plays for the Dolphins.  Speaking of big plays…..WR Phillip Livas returned 3 kickoffs for 84 yards (28.0 avg) and he also returned 3 punts for 90 yards (30.0 avg) with a TD (75-yarder).  The Falcons rushed for 104 yards on 26 carries (4.0 ypc) and they also completed 24 of 43 passes (55.8%) for 230 yards last night.

The Dolphins have signed 26-year old linebacker David Nixon.  Nixon played in 4 games for the Rams and Texans last year and he had 10 tackles.  Nixon has now played in 7 games in his first two years in the NFL and he has 10 tackles.  This was a depth signing for the Dolphins and little more.  If Nixon is going to make the Dolphins’ roster, he’s going to have to do it on special teams.

The Dolphins tried to make a deal for a new starting QB since the lockout ended but they just couldn’t find a match.  That means 26-year old Chad Henne will head into the season as the Fins’ starting QB in 2011.  Henne played in 15 games (14 starts) for the Dolphins last year and he completed 301 of 490 passes (61.4%) for 3,301 yards with 15 TD passes and 19 interceptions (75.4 QB Rating).  Henne also carried the ball 35 times for 52 yards (1.5 ypc) for the Dolphins last season.  Henne’s problem is that he is very inconsistent.  On some days he looks like a franchise QB, while on other days he’s simply awful.  The Fins need him to grow up on the field because they are counting on him in 2011 by default.  Henne has now played in 32 games (27 starts) in his first three years with the Dolphins and he has completed 582 of 953 passes (61.1%) for 6,246 yards with 27 TD passes and 33 INTs (75.3 QB Rating).  Henne has also carried the ball 51 times for 84 yards (1.6 ypc) with 1 TD run for the Fins.  Henne is 13-14 (48.1%) as the Dolphins’ QB and he will need to improve on that record if he wants to keep the starting QB job past the 2011 season.

The Dolphins settled on 26-year old Matt Moore as the backup QB after losing out on other attempts to improve at the position.  Moore played in 6 games (5 starts) for the Panthers last year and he completed 79 of 143 passes (55.2%) for 857 yards with 5 TD passes and 10 INTs (55.6 QB Rating).  Moore also carried the ball 5 times for 25 yards (5.0 ypc) last year.  Moore was given the starting job for the Panthers last season and he wasn’t good enough to keep it.  In his defense, he was getting punished behind an O-Line that just didn’t give him time to throw the ball.  He suffered multiple injuries to his shoulders last year.  If finally healthy, Moore could push Henne for the starting QB job at some point in 2011.   Moore has played in 22 games (13 starts) in his first three years in the NFL and he has completed 227 of 392 passes (57.9%) for 2,640 yards with 16 TD passes and 17 INTs (73.9 QB Rating).  Moore has also carried the ball 20 times for 27 yards (1.4 ypc) in his NFL career.  Moore is 7-6 (53.8%) as a starting QB in the NFL.

26-year old Kevin O’Connell will be the Fins’ #3 QB in 2011.  He didn’t get into any games last season.  He has now played in 2 games (0 starts) in his first three years in the NFL and he has completed 4 of 6 passes (66.7%) for 23 yards with 0 TD passes and 0 INTs (73.6 QB  Rating).  He also has carried the ball 3 times for -6 yards (-2.0 ypc) in his NFL career.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE DOLPHINS QBS IN 2011:  C-